"I did my Leaving Cert last year and now for the first time in eight years I don't have to juggle work and school. I've taken time off to concentrate on acting and decide what I want to do, so I hate the pressure of that question."

Niamh (18), who was at the centre of a bullying storyline in the Dublin soap, admitted that although she recently got a car, she has yet to take it for a spin.

"I got a car last June and I still haven't driven it once ... I'm too afraid," she said. "I said to my parents 'I have to get a car, I need a car, I'll drive it everywhere'. But no, I won't go near it. I actually got myself a Leap Card and that's my new baby!"

She recently said that she was overwhelmed by the reaction to the bullying storyline in Fair City - but believes it is because everyone can relate to it.

"I think everybody has gone through some sort of bullying because girls are so bitchy," Niamh said.

"Every day there is some smart remark or some people think they are being sarcastic but it's like, 'No, it has actually really hurt my feelings'."

Niamh said that Late Late presenter Ryan Tubridy (inset left) is one of her broadcasting heroes. "He's so professional. Every time I see him in the canteen, he gives a nice big smile and asks how you are," she said.